Studying the Stars
by EevyLynn
Summary: Neal sneaks out of his dorm to tutor Emma for her OWLs. (First in my OUAT Hogwarts AU)


**euphoriapotion prompted: Swanfire AU: Emma and Neal at Hogwarts in different houses (because why not?)**

**I actually loved this prompt so much, it sparked a whole verse in my head. They'll be posted as oneshots. So, here is the first installment of my OUAT Hogwarts AU.**

**Also, just in case there's any question:**

**Baelfire Gold - Hufflepuff**

**Emma Swan - Gryffindor**

Rolling onto his side, Bae listened to the sounds of his dorm mates one by one falling asleep. He held in a frustrated sigh that was threatening to be released as he laid there impatiently waiting for them to doze off. Lifting his head slightly, he punched his pillow a bit to make it more comfortable and rolled onto his back again.

After a while, the soft sounds of Kristoff's snores filled the air. Bae waited a few more minutes before slowly sitting up and pushed aside his yellow curtains. He cautiously looked around a bit before determining that the coast was clear. He climbed out of bed. Grabbing his dressing gown from where it was draped over his trunk, he tiptoed to the door, taking care not to stumble on the center step in front of their dorms entrance.

Bae's slippered feet padded softly on the wooden floors as he crept through the narrow tunnel to the door that led to the common room.

Slowly, he opened the rounded door, being wary of how it sometimes creaks. Slipping his head through the crack, he glanced around quickly before stepping through and pulling the door shut.

Bae softly crept as quickly as he could to the exit, but just as he put a foot on the small staircase leading to the upper tier, he heard a rustling sound behind him. Trying not to be too loud, Bae, as casually as he could, turned around and walked across the middle level very cautiously looking for where that sound came from. Glancing around, he noticed a small seventh year girl on the lower, main tier to his left at a table near the wall. She was hunched over a small pile of parchment, a string of drool connecting her mouth and arm.

He watched her for a moment as she shifted a bit, opening and closing her mouth a few times, before carefully turning around and making his way to the door. Reaching it, he glanced back one more time before opening the circular door and crawling into the passageway that led to the exit.

Bae pulled on the copper handle at the center of the door, slowly opening it and crawling out of the passageway. Once he was clear of the opening, the wooden door silently snapped shut. Looking at it now, one wouldn't be able to tell that there was anything special about the large stack of barrels against the wall, as it hid the entrance to the Hufflepuff common room.

Bae carefully made his way through the basement hallway, pulling his dressing gown more firmly around him as he got closer to the entrance hall and further from the warmth of the inner basement. Not long before the bend that would lead to the stairs up to the entrance hall, he took a sharp right at a small winding hallway. Going down a ways, he stopped at a tapestry featuring the defeat of Targaryen the Mad. Bae glanced both ways before quickly pushing it aside and stepping into the secret passage he and August had discovered back in their first year.

Bae pulled out his wand and whispered a quick, "Lumos," before making his way up the tightly wound stairs. At the narrow opening, he slowly looked around the leg of the suit of armor guarding where he stood. Seeing that the coast was clear, Bae slipped around the stone pedestal the armor stood on and swiftly made his way to the staircase leading down to the second floor.

Bae thanked his lucky stars that having both of his parents as teachers meant he had access to the patrol schedule. At the start of the term, he had made himself a copy, so he knew exactly which corridors to avoid as he made his way over to the Astronomy tower.

By the time he made it to the top of the spiral staircase of the tower, Bae was reasonably out of breath. He bent over for a bit to catch his breath before walking over to lean against the parapet. He silently stood for a moment, admiring the sight of the castle grounds at night before turning around and making his way to the storage closet.

"Alohamora," he whispered with a quick flick of his wand.

He heard the click of the lock and quickly stepped inside. Carefully moving a couple of telescopes aside, he reached underneath the bottom shelf to where he had carefully hidden a small wooden box. Pulling it out, he carefully put the telescopes back to how they were previously before making his way out.

Bae placed the box on the ground next to the wall, and with three quick taps of his wand on the lid, it slowly opened up. Reaching inside, he pulled out a plush purple blanket, much larger than the size of the box would indicate. He unfolded it and flicked it a bit to air it out a little before placing it on the ground. He pulled at the edges until he was satisfied that it was straight enough. Reaching back into the box, he grabbed a few pillows and strategically placed them on the blanket.

Standing up, he observed his handiwork with a smile.

A soft creak of the door broke the silence of the night. Turning around, Bae looked around the corner and a grin stretched across his face.

"Emma!"

Emma returned his smile with a breathless, "Hey."

"I have stuff set up over here," Bae said, beckoning her over.

Both hands clutching at the strap of her bag, Emma rounded the corner. Her eyes widened as she took everything in.

"Um, Bae?" she started, hesitantly as first but voice growing stronger as she talked, "I don't know what you think is going to happen, but—"

"Wait, what?" Bae said, eyes widening and face glowing. "No! That's not what I...I mean; uh...what I'm trying to say is—"

Bae cut himself off, took a deep breath, and tried again, "I just wanted us to be comfortable is all. I'm not asking for anything else."

Emma eyed him for a bit before smirking, "Good. Nothing's going to happen."

Kneeling on the blanket, Emma opened her bag and took out her star maps and collapsible telescope. While she set up her telescope, Bae reached back in his box for some snacks and bottles of butterbeer he had packed previously. He watched Emma fiddle with the knobs for a bit before grabbing her star charts to see what she was having issues with.

With a sigh, Emma plopped onto the ground beside him and rifled through the assorted snacks.

"Thanks for this by the way," Emma said around a mouth full of cauldron cake. "I have no idea how I'm going to pass that Astronomy O.W.L. at this rate."

"Well," Bae said, looking up from the charts with a crooked grin, "that's what we're here for."

He spread a few on the blanket between them and said, "Alright, we're going to start with how to identify these constellations here during different parts of the year. Then, I'm going to have you point them out to me in your telescope. Okay with you?"

Nodding, Emma replied, "Sounds good."

Rearranging themselves so they were looking at the maps at the same angle, Emma ended up sitting right next to Bae. Bae showed her what she did right versus what she did wrong and gave some pointers as well. After a bit, Emma zoned out and started observing Bae's face. His eyes lit up as he talked about the stars, and Emma smiled slightly when she saw him flick his head slightly to the side to move his thick, shaggy black hair from his eyes. Realizing she was studying the wrong thing, she shook her head and returned her attentions back to what he was saying.

Bae, for his part, tried desperately hard not to let her catch on that he noticed her attention wasn't quite on the stars. Holding back a smirk, he strategically went over things again, so that she heard everything at least once.

Carefully glancing at her while she wasn't looking, he realized that this was both going to be a long night and yet not long enough, and he was going to enjoy every minute of it.


End file.
